Friday, December 25, 2015

No Nonsense Baby Registry From A Third Time Mommy

Oh how different it is to be pregnant with baby number three!

My first pregnancy started with me scouring the internet for hours everyday, putting a registry together before I knew anything about babies, I consistantly "ate for two" and eventually bought everything myself before the baby shower. After the baby came I pumped too early, woke her up to feed every 4 hours and had accumulated way more baby junk than we ever could have needed. Yikes! Granted I was young and overly excited. The unfortunate thing is that I believed I needed to buy everything I saw on Pinterest to keep my baby safe, healthy, occupied and loved all day.

The second time around I was a little more knowledgable. We used a lot of hand-me-downs! Although we still held onto more than necessary, at least I got to reuse some of the things we had spent so much money on and hardly any time using the first time. We lived with my husband's family and while we appreciated all the extra help they gave us, I was so stressed and couldn't help but feel inadequate because of our situation. I suffered from ppd during my baby's first couple months.

This time around the feelings are so completely different.

I wouldn't say I've matured necessarily, but I've definitely learned from my experiences. My perspective has done a 180. Our focus is on the baby this time. My beautiful little miracle! Our gift from God! When my first two were born, we were so surrounded by things that we thought we 'needed' that I hardly got to hold my baby. It wasn't that I couldn't, it was that we had a bassinet, crib, pack n play, boppy, bumbo, vibrating seat, swing, car seat, jumper, and probably more that I can't remember that I thought we had to use.

I missed making memories with my babies at those precious ages

because there was so much stuff

that we knew they'd quickly grow out of,

and I felt we needed to use them before it was too late.

I was totally brainwashed and believed we needed at least 2 of every baby product on the market. It's kind of sad actually..

Don't get my wrong, I have so many beautiful memories of spending time with my sweet babies during their first few months! And I'm so thankful that we had the ability to take care of our growing family. We were never without necessities!

But I also have a lot of memories of the stress that comes with the clutter of unnecessary things.

Our babies were moving through stages so quickly during the first year, some things got used maybe once or twice (especially the clothes!). Looking back, I realize now that the money we spent on all of those "necessities" would have been better used to stock up diapers & wipes.

I'm not sharing this with you to whine about my regrets or convince you that you shouldn't buy the things you've had your eye on for your baby's nursery. I'm telling you this so that hopefully you can avoid some of the craziness that comes with owning all the stuff they say you "need" during your first or second pregnancy. Preparing for a baby is such an emotional experience! Use this time to seek the Lord and learn all you can about parenting instead of stocking up on things that will hold your baby for you.

Even though this is my third time, I made a brand new list (I'm a list person) of what we need to get before our baby comes. My list is extremely minimal compared to what you'll typically find online but it's just right for our family. Yours may be longer and that's okay!

-1 sound machine (amazing little device especially if there are other kids in the home)

I'll be making:

-1 pacifier clip (life saver!)

-a few beanies ;)

-1 or 2 sets of mittens.

And that's it. As the baby gets older we'll have to get a crib again & other things, but as far as I can remember, this is all we need for our first few months. I'm so, so excited to experience pregnancy and motherhood in this new way. If you found this helpful, please introduce yourself in the comments! I'd love to meet you. <3